2. UZBEKISTAN: A COUNTRY WITH HISTORY, PRESENT AND FUTURE
13
It must be noted that even this classification is conditional and
the belonging of some natural resources to one or another group
may be reconsidered; classifications in popular publications and
scientific research can also demonstrate essential differences. In ex-
haust ible natural resources are the resources whose reserves are not
depleted by use, for example, solar energy, wind
energy and heat
of the Earth’s interior. Water resources have long been regarded to
be in exhaustible natural resources; however, now many would class
them as conditionally inexhaustible or partially renewable resources,
con sidering the particular importance of freshwater for sustaining
life and its increasing consumption in the world.
In dividing resources into renewable and non-renewable, it is
important to consider the time necessary
for the used natural pro-
ducts to be replaced by new ones. It is assumed that it takes several
generations for the renewable natural resources to be replaced by
other resources. Such are, for example, timber, game animals, fish.
Non-renewable resources can never be renewed, for example, fossil
fuels (oil and coal) and metallic ores. It is necessary to determine
the period of renewal since some resources are renewed over a very
long time. Oil or coal has
formed over millions of years, which is
thousands of times slower than their human consumption rate.
The inclusion of some natural resources among renewable
resources lacks justification. For example, resources of the sea (fish,
crustaceans) were long considered as exhaustible renewable natural
resources. At the turn of the 20
th
century, the per capita consumption
of fish was ~16 kilograms. For many peoples fish and other seafood
are their principal daily sustenance. It has been calculated that the
total admissible annual harvest of fish and other sea animals in the
world amounts to 85 million tons. However, the figure was ignored
until fishing exceeded the species’ replenishment rate. 47-50% of
fish and other populations of sea animals have decreased so rapidly
that their natural replenishment is nearly impossible; 15-18% of
populations are potentially endangered; 9-10% have decreased
but their natural replenishment is possible; 21%
are moderately
exploited, while only 4% of populations have not been affected.
Uzbekistan is rich in natural resources. Resources of natural
gas covers local needs and the extraction of gas in 2005 reached
60 billions m
3
. Also resources of oil have industrial importance.
Ore mining is of major importance for national economy. The gold
resources are evaluated to be 2100 tons, but this amount can reach
3500 tons. The yearly mining of gold reaches 80-85 tons (~3% of
the global production). Uzbekistan also has significant resources of
polymetallic ores.
One of the most important natural resources is agricultural
land and soil – the biologically active upper layer of land with a
14
ENVIRONMENT, POLLUTION, DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF UZBEKISTAN
unique property – fertility. Soil development is an extended, gradual
and very complex process. Soil is commonly understood as the
uppermost layer of the Earth’s crust formed by mineral particles,
organic substances, water, air and living organisms. Soil is the
contact and interaction zone for the Earth, air
and water, and the
habitat for most of the biosphere.
Agrarian land can be divided into three categories: irrigated land,
dry land, and natural pasture. The Republic’s State Forest Reserve
accounts for about 3.2% of its total surface area (444 600 km
2
).
Uzbekistan’s forests can be divided into sand-desert, wetland and
valley, and mountainous forests; bushes and shrubs also occupy a
significant area. The Republic’s State Forest Reserve accounts for
about 80 thousand square kilometres, some 85%
of which lies in the
sand zone, 13% in the mountainous zone, and only 2% in wetland and
valleys.
As solar radiation is abundant, the only factor inhibiting
utilization of agrarian land is a shortage of water resources. Thus,
irrigated farming is the basis of agricultural production. Most arable
land is irrigated, and only a minor portion of this land is non-
irrigated land. The climate in Uzbekistan is favourable for growing
crops that thrive in temperate or tropical zones, particularly cotton.
Indeed, cotton is its major crop. However, grains,
rice and potatoes
are also cultivated on irrigated land. Sometimes insufficient warmth
in the northern areas can hinder crop ripening. Harsh weather (i.e.
late-spring and early-fall frosts, draughts, high temperatures) and
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